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Column bears repeating

Having taken Les Palmer to task for what I considered to be a particularly inane column in your February 1st edition, it is only right that I should comment on his column, entitled “Gun control begins at home,” in your February 8th edition. In this column, it would have been easy for him to have taken the NRA position, and I’m sure that would have brought him many plaudits from your readers. Instead, he acknowledges that there is a gun problem in our country, and we need to deal with it. The final paragraph of that column bears repeating: “If we can’t show that we can safely and responsibly handle firearms, we can expect an escalating war against guns. It’s difficult to convince someone of how important it is for you to own a gun when you’ve just shot yourself in the foot.”

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So we have a "gun control" problem in America, Mr. Brookman? And that it incumbent on perfectly legal gun owners to show that "we can safely and responsibly handle firearms"? It seems that anyone disagreeing with that point of view is, to use your word, 'inane'.

Is it possible that America has a social pathology problem that goes well beyond gun violence? After all, an overwhelming weapon of choice for murders and assaults are perpetrated by objects other than guns. Please refer to FBI crime statistics on this.

Yes, let's not talk about the mental state of the lunatics who have committed the heinous killings with firearms that we all shocked over. Perhaps a "conversation" needs to be started about how to deal with the legions of people who have diminished mental capacities who are not getting adequate treatment and who, after clear warning signs, finally resort to unspeakable violence.

And how about the non-stop violent videos, movies and games that saturate our culture, complete with spattering blood after every encounter? That one will be difficult to bring up because it might make our friends in Hollywood uncomfortable and unfairly 'offended' How about a system that is so pathetically politically correct that it refuses to identity the rising insanity of an man who shoots scores of unarmed service people in a movie auditorium? After all, it was a 'gun free zone'! Instead, the political orthodoxy of the system promotes this man to 'major' despite many documented incidents of his increasingly unacceptable behavior.

How about the recent killings of policeman and other innocents by Dornan in which he has almost reached 'folk hero' status in social media? According to his manifesto, Dornan was a staunch gun control advocate. Have we come to the point where an 'aggrieved' person can kill indiscriminately, all in the name of 'social justice' due to perceived racial slights? Of course, let's not mention that some of Dornan's victims were people of color. Again, what does this say about our social pathology?

How about the murder capital of America, Chicago? Yes, let's talk about guns being the focus in Chicago. We don't want to mention the totally failed school system and lack of any economic opportunity for young people in Chicago- the kind of hopelessness that drives young people to gangs for their economic support and social status. Dealing with all that is too hard and might hurt somebody's feelings along the way.

Instead, let's follow the path laid out by Senator Feinstein or the Governor Cuomo where we remove the pistol grip, or flash suppressor on those particularity scary looking so-called 'assault weapons'. And, while we are at it, let's calculate what is an acceptable number of rounds per magazine. Of course, this was all tried a number of years ago and was generally considered a failed "solution" after a period of time after enactment.

No, Mr. Brookman, the easy way is to try to pass totally ineffective laws, again. The disarming of America will make our society so much safer. We should declare as many 'gun free' areas as we possibly can! (I'm even more comforted knowing our non-DOD portion of government has been is busy purchasing well over a billion rounds of ammo to keep us safe).

I would rather talk about the hard things. And while we are at it, let's strip away the the politically correct rhetoric that prevents us from dealing with real problems. I would begin by not referring to differing points of view as being 'inane'. That kind of phony outrage is meant to silence the very discussion our society must have on a serious issue.

Is somebody unaware that 68% of the murders and gun violence is happening within the boundaries of the 50 largest metro areas of America. It is a fact that in most of these areas a local citizen has a very slim chance being able to purchase a gun for home protection. A Close look would reveal that the higher the Obama vote in an area the higher the Gun violence tick per tack! An even closer look would reveal that the Democratic party has long controlled, owned the political voting blocks like voter goulags. These cities and urben areas are in decline and seem to be ran in a manner that warehouses massive voter blocks dependant on the public dole! This is the breeding grounds of most of our civil unrest in America today and we are doing nothing to allieviate the problem.
Now it seems this failure of the Democratic party to bring financial prosperity and sucess to these areas has left them wanting. Dispite the Draconian 2nd generation gun control laws allready in place, Chicago suffers. Armed murderers all agree law abiding citizens are real ripe targets when only you are armed. The State of Florida's Correctional Dept. said 10 teenage murderers in thier prisons all agreed that the concealed carry law caused them enough concern to watch who they robbed. They each told of not assaulting somene because they felt that person may be armed.
Just the thought that an armed citizen may be in the mix has stopped certain homicides! You want to see gun violence slow down? Armed citizens defending themselves is the answer! It is coming to a town near you! Gun control freaks just don't understand why more Americans are not willing to become bound by your non defensive posture of allowing only the bad guys to be armed. How inane?

In reference to santini's 2nd to the last paragraph above.
Starting in April 2012 the department of homeland security and the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has been accumulating ammunition.
"On March 12, 2012 ATK announced that it was awarded an Indefinite Delivery/Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) agreement from the Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (DHS, ICE) for .40 caliber ammunition. This contract features a base of 12 months, includes four option years, and will have a maximum volume of 450 million rounds of hollow point bullets.[9][10]"
[edit]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alliant_Techsystems
have a nice day

LWT sure likes to change the subject when someone pries open the lid and sticks a stake through the plans and hopes of the Democratic goulog before they can camoflauge it in the light of day. We are talking about the inane approach to public safety which has PROVEN unworkable right here in America's heart land City. 2 generations of totally Draconian gun Control Laws has not slowed but only esculated the murder and carnage on the streets of Chicago. And you want to place more lives at risk by spreading this type of hype as the Gospel of The Democratic (Socialist) Party. We are talking you can't even think about having a gun to defend your home, your life , your loved ones!
The recent Supreme Court case favored local citizens gun ownership even in Washington,DC. But Chicago is different, it's the wild wild west, if they allowed guns in town anyone could become a gangster! Did you hear, some gangsters have done just that, they have guns in Chicago and nobody else does! They can just drive down the street and indiscrimantely shoot the wrong person, opps!
One main reason Americans everywhere but these metro areas love thier arms is simple. Someday this whole thing we call our economy and social structure could collapse like the house of cards it really is. Then with hundreds of thousands fleeing the cities to try and live of the land, just whose lands are they going to take? And you want these folks to have <10 round clips? Man that's SO generous of you and thoughtful to wish away all those previlant dangers in society by limiting the rounds in my clips, thanks.
I have freinds living in Chicago, they live in a 4th floor flat and chose that floor because 80% of home invasions and robberies occur on the 1st and 2nd floors. Those theives and crooks are lazy or scared to get very far from an exit. They are armed only with a tazer and a couple of baseball bats. They really like my old 1911 and say maybe someday! It's a toss up for most undecided folks on gun control. And sadly more and more folks are ignorant about guns and firearms because they live in the city and the main exposure they have to weapons is being afraid someone will pull one on them.
But it isn't a voter issue! No amount of popular vote will change that primal instinct within even civilized Men, that you must be able to defend your life and loved ones. So don't act so surprized that in the Chinese year of the Snake you turn over that gun control rock and find a coiled "Don't tred on Me" viper ready to strike. He knows what left handed trickery you are really up to and why would you turn over that ROCK?

Better known as the Efficiency of Militia Bill H.R. 11654 passed the US senate and was signed into law June 28,1902. Gun Control advocates should BONE up on it's contents before you violate the Constitutional Rights of the Militia, National Guard, and every gun owner in America. This Bill organizines and names the distinctions between the three named and types of Militia.The organized militia or the National Guard of any State,Territory, and the D.C. the unorganized Militia, and the Regular Army. The unorganized militia is every able bodied man between the ages of 18 and 45. All members of the unorganized militia have the absolute personal right and 2nd Amendment Right to keep and bear arms of any type and as many as they can afford to buy! This Law is written as to invalidate ANY so-called Gun Control Law.
So it would seem our founding fathers may have hit this speed bump of Gun Control before. The Dick act of 1902 cannot be repealed, to do so would violate the bills of attainder and it's expost facto laws resulting in a violation of the 2nd Amendment and the Bill of Rights. Fact is I'm not so sure this act hasn't been violated allready. Maybe somebody should get ahold of Speaker Chenault and ask if he has heard of the Efficiency of Militia Bill H.R. 11654?

There is no reason to assail you mentally ill men on here about gun control. You are robots and controlled by the Koch Bros. You guys are just what they want. When we become so inurred to gun violence, badda boom! You got your New World Order.

How's it feel to know you are going along with your 2nd Amendment Paranoia, simply because a couple guys in an Ivory Tower commands you and brainwashes you?

What a bunch of uneducated and lockstep jackboots you are. How's it feel to find out you are playing right into ALEC's plan?

Do any of you even know about ALEC? Google it, if you can get off the couch and see who's running this country. Guess what? It's a whole bunch of white people! You should like that.

Your household income is $21,600 annually you spend $37,800 leaving over $16,000 in credit card debt. You search real hard for a plan to reduce spending, and come up with $35 in spending cuts! Less a few zeroes that is what your Idol President Obama is calling a recovery. You can't face the facts that 68% over 2/3's of the violent Gun deaths you clammer about are done on Democratic turf. The huge metro complexes composed of 62 of the largest cities East of the Mississippi river. These onclaves of votes on the public Dole comprise most of the O-47 bullet voters that put Obama back in office. These areas have for generations been the nest of the Democratic Vote.
There it is nearly imposible for even a law abiding veteran to own a firearm. Yet the gang bangers have No problem scoring a piece if they want one. And you would be happy to throw my gun rights away and trap me in a hell hole like that? What's next the 1st Amendment, freedom of speach? That you think you have the right to strip Americans of thier personal gun rights to me is treasonous. I think it should be grounds for impeachment and you are right about one thing the extream liberals are mentally ILL.

I decided to check and see if anyone had commented on my comments on Les Palmer's column in which he acknowledges that there is a gun problem in our country. I hadn't intended to stir up a hornet's nest but it appears that I have. Before I proceed further, it might interest some of those who commented that I have been an NRA Life Member since 1958, although I do not agree with the policies of the current leaders of that organization.
Santini sets up a number of false arguments, accusing me of statements I didn't make. He should at least try and stick to the facts, and not put words in the mouths of those he may disagree with. He states, "I'd rather talk about the hard things", but doesn't tell us what those are. He suggests, if I'm reading his comments correctly, that some of us are avoiding discussing mental health problems in our country. I would agree that there are serious problems in this category, and this is a very good reason to pass a law that would require comprehensive background checks for ALL firearms purchases. With the modern technology available now for nearly instantaneous background checks at retail outlets for firearms, a station could be set up at all gun shows to carry out such checks, preventing people adjudged mentally ill, fugitives from justice, or convicted felons from purchasing firearms. Why does the NRA resist such a commonsense approach to this problem?
"Big Red Dog" seems to want to rant against the Democratic party in general. OK, he has lots of company, but his arguments do nothing to convince me I was wrong in my agreement with Mr. Palmer.
"KKSALM" tells us that the DHS has purchased ammunition using hollow point bullets. I fail to see any relevance in this fact to the statement I made.
I note, also, that commenters seem to like to hide behind "screen names". I'm not afraid or ashamed to sign my name:
Jerry Brookman

Your style of objection has been noticed, you seem a little quick on the rebuking and posted it 7 times. C'mone MAN and I don't agree with any one of them. But you are obviously very passonate in your response and are probably used to repeating yourself. But 7 times about a subject that is SO overregulated already that mere compliance with current Laws covers the real source of the gun violence issues.
Just in case you haven't noticed the recent events all across America have gotten the attention of gun owners from coast to coast. I think any comprehensive look at the effects of the 2nd generation of the type of gun control that exists in Chicago today would say it's proven to be ineffective in thorning violent crime within that huge population base. So why be so surprized that you face very stern rebuttle to your cause of eventual gun confiscation and or prohibitions nation wide. I think the results of leaving the general population at large defenseless against armed criminals has shown to cost the City of Chicago a Sandy Hook quantity of school aged vatalities every semester. That is just tragic!
I guanatee you the populous of Chicago has the salt and ability to solve the problem themselves w/o real full scale vigilanty actions. Those young murderers in Florida all said if they thought a potential victim was armed they didn't attack. Each of 10 said that alone potentially save someones life in thier breif criminal careers. 10 for 10, I'll take it! Show me ANY statistical information you can do better in America, not Eng. Can. Aust. but right here in the good old USA. And still conform to the Constitution and it's demands of the Bill of Right's concerning the Un-Organized Militia and we'll talk.

The fact that my comments were posted seven times was not intentional, I am not very computer literate and obviously I did something wrong. I have since I noticed this asked the Clarion Webmaster to delete the extra postings but this has not happened yet.
I did not think my comments were particularly "passonate", (I assume "passionate" was intended) nor were they intended to be.
I'm not familiar with the words "Caml", "C'Mone", "passonate", "throning", "rebuttle", "vatalities", "guanatee","vigilanty", nor the use of the word "populous" as BigRedDog states it but I think I get his meaning.
I am very much NOT in favor of gun confiscation, except from any persons not legally entitled to posses them (persons convicted of a felony, adjudged mentally incompetent, etc.). I do agree with Wes Palmer that there is a gun problem in this country. Reasonable steps, such as effective checks on persons wishing to buy a firearm via an existing federal registry of those not legally entitled to do so, etc. seem reasonable to me.

You quoted mr. Palmer, "If we can’t show that we can safely and responsibly handle firearms, we can expect an escalating war against guns"
My post about government agencies stockpiling hollow point ammunition relates to the afore mentioned "war against guns".
It's just IMO. Why do you think these government agencies need 450 million rounds of hollow point bullets?
Have a wonderful day.

I put LWT on my ignore list so he can talk about me behind my back which seems to excite some adolescent responce. Pouting that you take someone to task for yadda yadda yadda, just looks like you shot yourself in the journalistic foot. Like it's you alone against the world and it's gotta be Your Way. I value this forum very dearly and to have you show your pie hole so clearly in it's pages is a real hoot. You need to develope some journalistic humor about your responce to others or they will think you REALLY DON'T know how to participate without inflaming or inaning anyone's veiw.
Hey all BS aside we are in serious trouble as a Nation if we think social problems warrant incursions into the fundemental priciples this Nation was built on. I will take meassure to attack those incursions as prime enemies of truth, justice, and the American way. By exposing any statement that leads someone to believe Gun Control is the answer to mental health issues facing America today. It's like the man said on TV comparing mass murderers to gun loving sportmen is like saying NASCAR and DUI's all part of the car culture.
It's back to the point of every able bodied man from 18 to 45 being a member of the un-organized militia. The efficiency of militia means a lot of young Patriots will be needlessly killed if the militia isn't capably armed. To assume some Political Party warfare would endanger the safety and ability of our militia may make an a-- out of you but it won't make an a--!

The unorganized militia 18-45. These are the ages of men historically that were selected. When the draft would be activated.Unfortunately! The past 2 generations didn't have to sweat the selection process.

I'm surprised the editor hasn't chasened you yet, but something must be touching home to cause LWT to come out. Should somebody throw a party? There is obviously no rebuttle so he has chosen character attacks and pu-k mouth trash talk as a response to other concerned citizens veiws. I guess that it would be okay by him if every American with firearms had thier name and address published in local paper. Which happened in Detroit just this year.
Or with the Chinese stealing that info from our Gov. to assist controlling local populations when and if they invade! Why would a government continue to ignore laws designed to enhance freedom, to install step by step intrusions into the personal right and freedom to bear arms? First it's manditory registration, then it esculated rapidly to other methods of gun control as seen in Europe. I'd be all for the current back ground checks if they stopped at the point of saying yes or no this citizen may buy a firearm. Why do they want the serial #, make, model, action style, and length of barrel? Unless they are planning to use that information. But the fact that this info is now probably in Chinese hands now along with most of our vital trade secrets and industrial knowhow. Thanks but I have an issue with someone compiling a list that might even have LWT address for that very reason.
And I may not type, spell, and write real pretty, but buddy if the chips were ever down, and you had to have someone to pull your fat out of the fire when things turned totally south, I'm the MAN. Most everybody that knows me tells me I'm there first choice (right after devine intervention did not happen) if they find themselves in that old valley! I'd be just as concerned to see even LWT's rights and best interest be upheld as those of one of my closest freinds. Just don't bring comdimnation on the legal and responsible gun owners of this great land to impose some unattainable percieved social value.
But no kidding if you EVER want to take the gloves off or put them on I'm real easy to find.

Funny you mention "Hush Puppy" and the Patriot Act in the same breath, they came with unique green tipped rounds.
The Model 39 was used by Naval Special Warfare units during the Vietnam War.[2] The Model 39 was issued to officers-in-charge (OICs) of MST-2 detachments as their sidearm. SEAL Teams used either the Model 39 without modification or a modified version, the Mk 22 Mod 0, which was called the "hush puppy".[2] The modified pistol had a suppressor with a slide lock (which kept the slide from moving backwards upon firing, thereby decreasing produced noise) The Mk 22 Mod 0 also had raised iron sights, to provide easier sighting over a bulky suppressor. The gun's purpose was to eliminate sentry dogs or guards without alarming the main target.[1]

The man will be lookin for you and you better be wearing hush puppies. Even innuendoe talking in a threatening manner can get your chain jerked real hard when you are throwing weapons into the mix. So how stupid are you?

Something most Alaskans seem to be unaware of, or deliberately ignore, is that while the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is within the boundaries of the State of Alaska, it is Federal Land. The Statehood Act gave the state something like 104 million Acres, but President Eisenhower, who signed that act, also created the ANWR. And the NWR part stands for NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE. Unlike most Alaskans, I have spent some time there, so I believe I'm more qualified to speak on the subject than folks who haven't been there. If Congress and the President choose to designate the Coastal Plain ("1002 Area") as Wilderness, that will happen, but it hasn't happened yet. If Congress and the President choose to open it to oil development that will happen, although it hasn't happened yet, even when both houses of Congress were controlled by a majority of Republicans, and the President was a Republican (George W. Bush).